NCAA's charges vs. ASU baseball coaches, staff detailed

Unethical-conduct charges against Arizona State University baseball coaches and staff are among 10 total violations alleged by the NCAA in a report sent last month to the university president.

The full list of alleged NCAA violations was obtained Friday by The Arizona Republic. Among the specific charges it details are several related to recruiting and improper benefits for players that underlie its claim that ASU lacked institutional control over its baseball program, as reported Thursday by The Republic.

The 19-page notice of allegations paints a picture of a program in which head baseball coach Pat Murphy - who was recently ousted - "failed to promote an atmosphere for compliance" with the rules and of an athletic department that did not monitor staff or educate them on NCAA regulations.

Key allegations center on recruiting violations, payments to players for work they did not perform, improper benefits to players through a sports training center, and coaches making more calls to student athlete prospects than allowed.

The allegations are not the last word in the probe, and ASU and Murphy are expected to argue that at least some of the incidents are less serious than the report suggests. The NCAA is asking for numerous records, including e-mails and phone logs.

ASU could refute some claims in the report, argue that other acts were unintentional or amounted to minor technical violations, and assert that none of the practices provided the school with a competitive advantage. ASU also will likely point out that it initiated the investigation into its baseball program based on a tip and provided its findings to the NCAA. Some or all of those factors could mitigate penalties.

Murphy and ASU declined comment on the report's contents.

Murphy and four other staffers are accused of unethical conduct for failing to "protect the integrity" of the NCAA's investigation by conducting their own inquiry into 500 impermissible recruiting phone calls.

Murphy is accused directly in the document of making recruiting calls that violated rules and led a prospective player to rescind a verbal commitment to another school and sign with ASU.

"While I can't discuss the NCAA investigation, I can say that any mistakes were inadvertent and unintentional," Murphy said Friday.

Murphy, a three-time reigning Pac-10 Coach of the Year, was abruptly terminated after 15 seasons on Nov. 20, a day after university President Michael Crow received the allegations. University officials have repeatedly refused to discuss the NCAA report and have said Murphy's departure was unrelated to the NCAA probe.

"We will be happy to . . . provide information once the NCAA has completed its investigation and released its results," ASU spokeswoman Terri Shafer said Friday. "We do not intend to interfere with the investigation or influence its direction by speculating on outcomes that are not yet determined."

The NCAA investigation is not expected to be finalized until June.

The first four allegations involve phone calls that violated recruiting rules. Under NCAA rules, coaches are limited to one recruiting call per week. According to the allegation, baseball officials made about 500 calls to prospective players that were in violation.

The NCAA alleged that Murphy compromised the investigation into the phone calls, saying he was told not to discuss the phone calls with anyone. Instead, Murphy instructed Michael Rooney, director of baseball operations, to investigate the calls and obtain explanations from all involved.

According to the NCAA, Rooney created a spreadsheet that attempted to explain the calls. The NCAA questioned the results.

"Rooney entered an explanation into the spreadsheets that was based solely on Rooney's own speculation," the NCAA wrote in its report.

Rooney, who was fired from ASU on the same day Murphy was terminated, declined comment on the case Friday.

The NCAA also accused a former assistant coach of reporting false or misleading information. The report alleged that in interviews the assistant coach denied conversations that he had with a supervisor about the calls.

The NCAA also alleges players received $63,000 worth of impermissible benefits and that several players were paid a total of $5,889 for work they did not perform.

According to the NCAA, numerous players used the services of Athlete's Performance Inc., an internationally recognized facility which was located on the ASU campus, to conduct physical conditioning. They did not have to pay for the services.

Also, as many as 19 players working for Murphy's non-profit Programs for Youth received unearned wages, according to the report. The director of the program recorded hours players worked "without regard for whether the recorded time reflected the actual hours worked," the NCAA said.

The phone calls, the benefits, the payments to players and the improper coaching activities are key factors cited in the NCAA's allegation that the university lacked institutional control of the baseball program, a major violation that could lead to severe sanctions for the entire athletic department.

In 2005, the university was hit with a lack of institutional control violation over problems in the football program and placed on a two-year probation. A repeat major violation within five years carries sanctions that could include scholarship reduction, restriction of postseason play and termination of staff.

If ASU is hit with sanctions, it would give the school the most NCAA violations in the country.

NCAA is requesting documents and information from ASU that might factor into any decision on penalties. It asks for information about grants the university has offered to athletes during the past four years and the identities of students who are on financial aid. "Finally, please address whether the institution should be treated as a repeat violator," the report states.